P

pagination The assignment of page numbers, either manually or electronically, in a document.
paragraph indent a specified amount of space left blank at the left in the first line of a paragraph.
Pair-kerning Automatically kerning selected pairs of characters when they would otherwise be spaced too close or far apart. Characters that are pair-kerned are specified by the font designer.
palette The collection of colors, shades, or patterns that can be selected and displayed on a video screen with the aid of a computer and a graphics program.
PANTONE Colors A color system of over 1200 standard colors developed by Pantone, Inc.
paste To transfer the content previously copied to the clipboard (˜) another location in a document, or to another document. This term was adopted from the process of applying glue or wax to paper repro in order to”paste” it to a layout board.
pica A unit of measure equal to 12 points. There are 6 picas per inch. see point, also see Conversion Chart for Inches, Picas, and Points
piece fraction a single-character fraction usually available only for a few common fractions, used in non-technical material
pixel The smallest element of an image, and the unit in which its resolution is expressed. The normal resolution of VGA graphics is 640x480 pixels; such a screen has a total of 307,200 pixels. A low resolution 320x200 image has only 64,000 pixels; a high res 1024x768 image has 786,432.
plate A light-sensitive piece of material upon which an image can be recorded - usually metal which in turn is fitted to a plate cylinder on an offset press which then transfers its image to a blanket which in turn transfers it to paper.
PMS abbreviation for Pantone Matching System. A means of describing colors by assigning them numbers. See also Pantone Colors.
point unit of measure used by the print industry. A traditional point is equal to 0.013837” or approximately equal to 1/72”. A Postscript point is exactly 1/72” and has virtually replaced the traditional point as the industry standard. see pica, also see Conversion Chart for Inches, Picas, and Points
portrait A page whose width is shorter than its height.
PostScript A page definition language (PDL) developed by Adobe Systems. When a page of text and/or graphics is saved as a PostScript file, the page is stored as a set of instructions specifying the measurements, typefaces, and graphic shapes that make up the page.
prepress The preparation work required to turn “camera-ready” artwork into the printing plates needed for mass production, i.e., making negatives, “stripping” or placing the negatives in place, and etching the plates.
press proofs In color reproduction, a proof of a color subject on a printing press, using the same color inks and paper stocks on which the final run will be done on. This proof is done prior to the final reproduction and is the only true and predictable way to show proof of what is contained in the litho films. There is no other proof system that takes into account printing aspects such as absorbency of stock, hue of inks, trap and other printing mechanics which occur on a press.
process color (also called four-color process) a means of achieving full color with four inks; yellow, magenta, cyan, and black; each color is separated onto its own negative and a full color effect is created by overlapping these four transparent ink colors.
proof any laser print or Xerox copy of repro used for proofing and marking corrections.
proofreader’s marks internationally known and understood symbols used (with some variations) to mark errors and changes on proofs.
proportional font a font in which m, the widest letter, takes up far more space than an i compare with monospace

Q

quadtone A grayscale image reproduced using four spot or process colors to add depth and color.

R

ragged text set with an unjustified margin, right, left, or both.
raster image, raster file see bitmapped file
reader’s spread Two sequentially numbered left-right pages of a document placed side-by-side for work of some sort to be carried out.
registration marks usually a bull’s-eye or crosshairs used for perfect positioning of board and overlay, art and screen color negative and black negative.
re-screening to scan a printed image and re-output for use in a new document. These re-scan images tend to have severe moiré problems. Since the same basic screens and screen angles are used, it is necessary to slightly enlarge (104% or greater) or reduce (90% or smaller) in order to reduce or eliminate conflicting screen angles causing a moiré pattern. The further use of a sharp or unsharp masking controls may also be necessary.
resolution 1. Measure of imager output capability, usually expressed in dots per inch (dpi). 2. Measure of halftone quality, usually expressed in lines per inch (lpi).
retouching The correction or deliberate manipulation of color, tone or detail in an original work of art, photograph or other original which needs correction.
reversed (reverse video) white type within a black or dark background.
RIP Raster Image Processor, the hardware/software which converts data which has been stored in a computer into a series of lines of tiny dots which are output on film or photographic paper. In line work, the dots can be grouped to create solid areas.
river a streak of white space in printed matter caused when the spaces between words in several successive lines happen to fall one almost below another.
roman the opposite of italic; also used as opposite of boldface, but not at GTS.
rule straight, thin or thick lines usually measured in points, i.e., 1 pt.

S

sans serif plain, unornamented letters with even line weight. see also serif
screen an area printed in dots whose density is therefore some percentage less than 100% color or black.
serif style of letters which have short lines stemming from the upper and lower ends of the strokes of a letter.
script see cursive
signature A form or portion of a form that is bound and folded individually or in combination with other signatures.
small caps a font of capitals that are approximately x-height, generally used for a.m., p.m., b.c., a.d.; often used for Initial with full caps in display elements.
specs specifications, or written detailed descriptions of how all elements in a book should be typeset and positioned (also called spec tape).
spine the backbone of a book, on which is printed the spine copy.
spread two facing pages.
stet proofreader’s mark for “let it stand”, used to cancel out some instruction; “disregard this correction.”
subscript a character or symbol printed partly below the base line of the text.
superscript a small numeral, fraction, or other character that prints above the x-height of the font. Often used in mathematical notation.